The article of Asst. Prof. Dr. Murat Doğan, deputy dean of Istanbul Gelisim University (IGU), Faculty of Fine Arts (FAF) and lecturer of the Gastronomy and Culinary Arts Department, it was published in Hotel Restaurant & hi-tech magazine, which has a wide readership from abroad is the only monthly magazine in the sector in Turkey, which closely follows the technological developments of the hospitality industry.
As a Society, We Oriented to Fast-Food Eating Style
Doğan, who started his article by stating that today, as a society, we are more inclined towards fast-food eating style, stated that many values such as artisan restaurants are slipping away from the hands of the gastronomic culture without realizing it.
Stating that they work with a professor at the university on the food safety situation of artisan restaurants, Doğan said, “While we were working on this issue, we also encountered the problems experienced by artisan restaurants. Today, as a society, we are more inclined towards fast-food meals. In fact, many values such as artisan restaurants are slipping away from the hands of gastronomy culture without our awareness. Yes, protecting our cultural values should be a guarantee of our future. The way to achieve this is to reshape our core values according to today's conditions.
Artisan Restaurants from the Ottoman Empire to the Present
Stating that people ate from free soup kitchens or cooks' shops when they had to eat outside during the Ottoman period, Doğan said that until the early 1900s, one or two kinds of food appeared in cook shops, and in the late nineteenth century, Istanbul became a frequent destination for merchants and wealthy shopkeepers. He stressed that restaurants, derived from the Italian word “locanda”, have begun to open. Stating that merchants and shopkeepers also visit cook shops for lunches enriched their menus and this transformation gave birth to artisan restaurants, Doğan underlined that when places to eat out are evaluated in terms of the country's gastronomy, artisan restaurants stand out with their originality.
Stating that the centuries-old tradition of soup kitchens and cook shops in the Ottoman Empire turned into artisan restaurants with the first years of the Republic and continued to be an important part of our food culture, Doğan said that today these restaurants are not in demand due to the hygiene concerns of the society and for some different reasons, therefore it is an important issue. He stated that his cultural heritage is in danger of disappearing. Emphasizing that especially the kitchens of artisan restaurants and the lack of infrastructure justify this concern, he underlined that one of the biggest handicaps is that the equipment in which vegetables, meat, chicken and fish used in kitchens are cut, chopped, processed and cooked is not designed according to hygienic design.
What are the Precautions to be Taken in Artisan Restaurants in terms of Food Safety?
Stating that in their study, they determined that there are some measures to be taken in order to make the artisan restaurants trouble-free in terms of food safety, Doğan summarized the said measures as follows;
-Equipments should be placed in a clean and manner to prevent germ contamination.
• Cutting and chopping boards should be cleaned regularly and should not be left wet. It was observed that a lot of microbes developed in the wet wood samples taken.
• Separate cutting boards should be used for red meat, chicken, vegetables, etc. When this application is not done, disease-causing microbes from meat boards are transmitted to raw vegetables consumed crosswise. It was stated that this situation was also observed in the study.
• Damaged chopping boards should be renewed. Because it has been determined that there are too many disease-causing microbes among the rough, worn boards.
• There should be a hand washing sink in the kitchen and materials such as liquid soap, disinfectant and paper towels should be kept nearby. It was stated that too many germs were detected on the hands of the personnel who could not find the opportunity to wash their hands frequently.
The HACCP System Should Be Implemented Effectively
Finally, Doğan stated that the HACCP system should be implemented correctly in order to ensure food safety in artisan restaurants. Stating that the hygiene concern, which is a social concern, will thus be eliminated, Doğan underlined that the artisan restaurants are the carriers of the gastronomic culture and should be included in a correct system where their authenticity is preserved and ancient dishes are passed on to future generations.
